Buried digit spacer-separated capacitor array

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to the field of semiconductor integrated circuits and, in particular, to capacitor arrays formed over the bit line of an integrated circuit substrate. The present invention provides a method for forming stacked capacitors, in which a plurality of patterned capacitor outlines, or walls, are formed over the bit line of a semiconductor device. In one aspect of the invention, spacers are formed on the patterned capacitor outlines and become part of the cell poly after being covered with cell nitride. In another aspect, the spacers are formed of a material capable of being etched back, such as titanium nitride. In another aspect, a metal layer is patterned and annealed to a polysilicon layer to form a mask for a capacitor array, and subsequently etched to form the array.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of semiconductor integratedcircuits and, in particular, to capacitor arrays formed over the bitline of an integrated circuit substrate.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The current semiconductor industry has an ever-increasing pressure forachieving higher device density within a given die area. This isparticularly true in memory circuit fabrication, for example DynamicRandom Access Memory (DRAM) manufacturing. A memory cell of a typicalDRAM includes a storage capacitor and a charge transfer field effecttransistor. The binary data is stored as electrical charge on thestorage capacitor in the individual memory cell.

In the early days of DRAM development, planar-type storage capacitorswere used which occupied large substrate areas. These were laterreplaced with container capacitors which occupied less surface area.Recently, however, with the number of memory cells on the DRAM chipdramatically increasing, the miniaturization of DRAM devices requiressmaller capacitor features as well as increased storage capacitance.

Different approaches have been employed to achieve higher storagecapacitance on a given die area to meet the demands of increasingpacking density. For example, with trench capacitors, electrical chargehas been stored in capacitors formed vertically in a trench thatrequires a deep trench formation, but this encounters significantprocessing difficulties. Another approach is to build a stackedcontainer storage capacitor over at least a portion of the transistor toallow, therefore, smaller cells to be built without losing storagecapacity. Stacked capacitors have become increasingly accepted in thesemiconductor art. However, as the device density continues to increase,the planar surface area required for building the conventional stackedcapacitors must be further reduced. Further, the topography of currentlyfabricated devices requires more difficult planarization processes to beperformed on the DRAM devices.

Accordingly, there is a need for an improved method for fabricatingstacked capacitors that minimizes the drawbacks of the prior art. Thereis also a need for stacked capacitors which have minimal spacing that isnot afforded by current photolithographic feature sizes.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a method for forming stacked capacitorsin high density, in which a plurality of patterned capacitor outlines inthe form of walls, are formed over the bit line of a semiconductordevice. In one aspect of the invention, spacers are formed on thepatterned capacitor walls and become part of the cell polysilicon afterbeing covered with cell nitride. In another aspect, the spacers areformed of a material capable of being etched back, such as titaniumnitride. In another aspect, a metal layer is patterned and annealed to apolysilicon layer to form a mask for a capacitor array, and subsequentlyetched to form the array.

Additional features and advantages of the present invention will be moreclearly apparent from the detailed description which is provided inconnection with accompanying drawings which illustrate exemplaryembodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic sectional view of a semiconductor waferfragment illustrating a base structure for forming the first embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 1 semiconductor waferfragment after initial processing steps for forming the first embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 2 structure at a subsequentstage of fabrication.

FIG. 4 is a top view of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 3 structure at a subsequentstage of fabrication.

FIG. 6 is a top view of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is side sectional view of the FIG. 5 structure at a subsequentstage of fabrication.

FIG. 8 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 7 structure at a subsequentstage of fabrication.

FIG. 9 is a top view of FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 8 structure at a subsequentstage of fabrication.

FIG. 11 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 10 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 12 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 11 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 13 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 12 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 14 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 13 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 15 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 11 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 16 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 15 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 17 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 16 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 18 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 17 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 19 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 14 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 20 is a diagrammatic sectional view of a semiconductor waferfragment illustrating a base structure for forming another embodiment ofthe invention.

FIG. 21 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 20 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 22 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 21 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 23 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 22 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 24 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 23 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 25 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 20 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 26 is a diagrammatic sectional view of a semiconductor waferfragment illustrating a base structure for forming another embodiment ofthe invention.

FIG. 27 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 26 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 28 is top view of FIG. 27.

FIG. 29 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 27 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 30 is top view of the FIG. 29 structure at a subsequent stage offabrication.

FIG. 31 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 29 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 32 is a perspective view of the FIG. 31 structure.

FIG. 33 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 31 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 34 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 33 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 35 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 34 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 36 is a top view of the FIG. 35 structure.

FIG. 37 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 35 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 38 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 37 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 39 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 38 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 40 is a side sectional view of the FIG. 39 structure at asubsequent stage of fabrication.

FIG. 41 is a perspective view of the FIG. 40 structure.

FIG. 42 is a diagram of a computer system according to an embodiment ofthe present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In the following detailed description, reference is made to variousspecific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. Theseembodiments are described with sufficient detail to enable those skilledin the art to practice the invention, and it is to be understood thatother embodiments may be employed, and that structural and electricalchanges may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of thepresent invention.

The term “substrate” used in the following description may include anysemiconductor-based structure that has a semiconductor surface. The termshould be understood to include silicon, silicon-on-insulator (SOI),silicon-on-sapphire (SOS), silicon-on-nothing (SON), doped and undopedsemiconductors, epitaxial layers of silicon supported by a basesemiconductor foundation, and other semiconductor structures. Thesemiconductor need not be silicon-based. The semiconductor could besilicon-germanium, germanium, or gallium arsenide. When reference ismade to a “substrate” in the following description, previous processsteps may have been utilized to form regions or junctions in or on thebase semiconductor or foundation.

Referring now to the drawings, where like elements are designated bylike reference numerals, FIG. 1 depicts a portion of a memory cellconstruction for a DRAM at an intermediate stage of the fabrication, inwhich stacked capacitors are to be formed in accordance with the presentinvention. A pair of memory cell access transistors 33 are formed withinand over a doped well 13 of a substrate 12. The well may be a p-well orn-well depending on the type of transistor 33. The pair of transistors33 are surrounded by a trench isolation region 14 that providesisolation. N-type active regions 16 are provided in the doped p-typewell 13 of substrate 12 (for NMOS transistors) and the pair of accesstransistors have respective gate stacks 30. The gate stacks 30 includean oxide layer 18, a conductive layer 20, such as a doped polysiliconlayer with tungsten silicide on it, nitride sidewall spacers 32, and anitride cap 22. Additional stacks 31 may also be formed for use inperforming self aligned contact etches to form conductive plugs 50, 50 afor capacitor structures in the region between stacks 30, 31. Thedetails of these steps are well-known in the art and are not describedin detail herein.

Polysilicon plugs 50, 50 a (FIG. 1) are formed in a contact opening of afirst insulating layer 24, to directly connect to a source or drainregion 16 of the semiconductor device. The first insulating layer 24could be, for example, borophosphosilicate glass (BPSG), borosilicateglass (BSG), or phosphosilicate glass (PSG). Once the polysilicon plugs50, 50 a are formed, the whole structure, including the substrate 12with the gate stacks 30, the first insulating layer 24 and thepolysilicon plugs 50, 50 a is CMP polished to provide a planarizedsurface.

At this point, a second insulating layer 25, which can be of the samematerial as that of the first insulating layer 24, is deposited over thefirst insulating layer 24 and the polysilicon plugs 50, 50 a. A contactopening or via is etched over the polysilicon plug 50 a and a conductivelayer or interconnection layer 55 is then deposited and patterned toconnect to polysilicon plug 50 a, as illustrated in FIG. 1. Theinter-connection layer 55 functions as a digit line. The digit line ismade of, for example, a polysilicon, titanium nitride, or a tungstenmaterial with a nitride cap.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a third insulative layer 60 is formed over theinter-connection layer 55. The third insulative layer 60 could be, forexample, BPSG, BSG, or PSG. The polysilicon plugs 50, that are not incontact with the digit line 55, are made to extend through the thirdinsulative layer 60. The contact holes for the polysilicon plugs inlayer 60 are made using conventional photolithographic techniques andplasma etching. For example, the etching can be carried out in areactive ion etcher (RIE) using an etchant gas mixture containingfluorine, such as C₅F₈, C₄F₈, CHF₃, CO, O₂, and Ar.

A layer of conductively doped polysilicon is deposited over layer 60 tofill the contact holes and provide conductive plugs 61, and subsequentlyetched back to expose layer 60. The conductive plugs 61 are electricallyisolated from the digit line 55, for example, by nitride spacers (notshown). The details of these steps are well-known in the art and othermethods may be used.

Next, an etch stop layer 64 is deposited over the third insulative layer60. The etch stop layer 64 could be, for example, a nitride, or anotherdielectric etch stop layer. A thick layer 68 of BPSG, or otherinsulative material, is then deposited over the etch stop layer 64. Thelayer 68 of BPSG is etchably different from the etch stop layer 64. Ontop of layer 68, a layer 70 of polysilicon is deposited. Layers 68 and70 are also substantially etchably different.

One patterning option for forming capacitors of the present invention isto create alternating polysilicon rectangles in the polysilicon layer70. This can be accomplished, for example, by patterning with resist andetching the polysilicon layer 70 to form a square or rectangular checkerboard pattern. This etching step etches through the polysilicon layer 70but stops at the BPSG layer 68. The result of this etching step is achecker board pattern of square polysilicon blocks 70 c, as illustratedin FIGS. 3 and 4. Alternatively, the patterning can be used to create analternating pattern of rectangular shaped blocks, or oval shaped blocks,illustrated by dashed lines 70 d and 70 e, respectively, in FIG. 4.

Next, sidewall spacers 80 are formed on the sidewalls of alternatingsquare, rectangular, or oval blocks 70 c, 70 d and 70 e, as shown inFIGS. 5 and 6. The spacers 80 are formed by depositing a polysiliconlayer over the polysilicon blocks 70 c, 70 d, or 70 e (hereinaftercollectively referred to as “blocks 70 c”), and subsequentlyanisotropically etching to provide a plurality of sidewall spacers 80 onall vertical surfaces of alternating blocks 70 c. Collectively, thesidewall spacers 80 and polysilicon blocks 70 c define an array ofstructure profiles which will be transferred into at least one of theunderlying layers.

In another patterning option, the square, rectangular, or oval checkerboard pattern of FIGS. 5 and 6 can be printed with photoresist onto theBPSG layer 68. Blocks 70 c and spacers 80 would be comprised ofphotoresist. With this option, the minimum corner to corner spacingbetween the photoresist square or rectangular blocks would have to bemaintained without bridging.

Next, with reference to FIG. 7, the BPSG layer 68 is selectively andanisotropically etched down to the nitride etch stop layer 64 to formBPSG blocks 68 a. Care should be taken during this step to overetchenough to clear the BPSG material out from between the corners of theblocks to prevent possible cell node to cell node shorts. Thepolysilicon spacers 80 and remaining polysilicon blocks 70 c (or 80 and70 c comprised of photoresist) are then selectively removed by suitablemethods such as chemical-mechanical polish (CMP), or wet or dry etching,which are well known in the art.

Referring now to FIGS. 8 and 9, a spacer 90 is deposited on the verticalwalls of the BPSG blocks 68 a. The spacer 90 must be wide enough tobridge together at the corners of BPSG blocks 68 to isolate individualsquares, rectangles, or ovals in order to prevent the possibility ofcell node to cell node shorts. The width W of spacer 90 should begreater than distance ½ D of FIG. 6. The spacer 90 material ispreferably either titanium nitride, polysilicon, or another materialetchably different from the BPSG blocks 68 a. The spacer 90 material mayalso comprise platinum. Alternatively, the material for blocks 68 a(material layer 68) can comprise any material that is etchably differentfrom the spacer material 90. The material 68 can be chosen to be amaterial that may remain on the periphery of the integrated circuitwithout the need to remove it during subsequent process steps.

The BPSG blocks 68 a are then selectively etched away down to thenitride etch stop layer 64, shown in FIG. 10, preferably using a wetetch leaving the spacers 90 intact. The periphery is covered with resistduring this step to prevent removal of BPSG from other areas. At thispoint the spacers 90 are in the form of a square, rectangular, or ovalhoneycomb pattern. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 11, the etch stop layer64 is selectively etched or otherwise removed using spacers 90 as apattern utilizing techniques well known in the art.

If the spacer material used for spacers 90 is titanium nitride and it isdesirable to increase its thickness, another layer of titanium nitride90 a is deposited over existing spacers 90 and spacer etched, as seen inFIG. 12. Alternatively, titanium nitride can be deposited in one step ina layer of sufficient thickness approximately equal to layer 90 and thetwo layers 90 a. During this etching process the portions of newlydeposited titanium nitride spacer 90 a covering the insulative layer 60are overetched so as to expose a direct electrical contact withpolysilicon plugs 61.

Next, with reference to FIG. 13, a hemispherical grain (HSG) polysilicon92 is deposited over the spacers 90 and 90 a, and exposed polysiliconplugs 61. This rough polysilicon layer 92 forms the cell node of acapacitor. The rough HSG layer 92 increases the surface area of thestorage node which improves the cell's capacitance. The upper portion ofthe HSG layer 92 is then removed by chemical-mechanical polish (CMP) ordry etching, as well known in the art, to isolate cell nodes and exposethe top portion of the titanium nitride layers, designated by referencenumeral 94. The titanium nitride 90, 90 a is then selectively removed byetching with a piranha (sulfuric/hydrogen peroxide) process, or otherselective etch process, to isolate the containers 93 formed by theremaining HSG layer, as shown in FIG. 14. Then, as well known in theart, a cell nitride dielectric and a capacitor upper electrode may bedeposited to form capacitors in the containers 93. For example, asnoted, Hemispherical Grain (HSG) Polysilicon 92 can be deposited to formthe bottom cell plate of the capacitor, followed by deposition of adielectric layer such as a nitride, followed by deposition of an upperelectrode.

Referring back to FIG. 8, if the spacer material used for spacers 90 ispolysilicon, then a thin layer of silicon nitride 90 b is deposited overthe polysilicon spacers 90, as shown in FIG. 15. Then, referring to FIG.16, a layer of polysilicon 90 c is deposited over the silicon nitridelayer 90 b. The polysilicon layer 90 c is anisotropically etched alongwith the layer of silicon nitride 90 b, etch stop layer 64, and an upperportion of insulating layer 60 to define containers 91, as shown in FIG.17. During this etching process the portions of newly depositedpolysilicon layer 90 c covering the etch stop layer 64 are overetched soas to expose a direct electrical contact with polysilicon plugs 61.

Hemispherical grain (HSG) polysilicon 92 is then deposited over thespacers 90, 90 b, and 90 c, and exposed polysilicon plugs 61. Thecontainers 91 are then filled with photoresist and the HSG layer 92 isremoved by chemical-mechanical polish (CMP) or dry etching to expose thehorizontal surfaces of layers 90, 90 b, and 90 c, as shown in FIG. 18.Then, as well known in the art, cell nitride and an upper capacitorelectrode may be deposited to form capacitors in the containers 91, asdiscussed above. During subsequent processing steps, electricalconnections may be established between an upper capacitor electrode andpolysilicon spacer 90, to enable the spacer to become part of the cellplate of the capacitor.

Another way to form capacitors, utilizing the disclosed patterningtechniques, is by utilizing the above disclosed structures of FIGS. 14and 18 with barriers, metal electrodes, and cell plates with dielectricshaving high dielectric constants. For example, with reference to FIG.19, a metal insulator silicon (MIS) capacitor can be formed as follows.An ammonia anneal is performed on the wafer to nitridize the surface ofthe HSG polysilicon 92. Thereafter, if the sidewall spacers 90 (FIGS.10-14) are titanium nitride spacers, ans were removed prior to amoniaanneal a cell dielectric layer 95, such as tantalum pentoxide (Ta₂O₅),is deposited over the polysilicon surface 92. A cell plate of titaniumnitride 97 is deposited over the dielectric layer 95. A layer ofpolysilicon 99 is then deposited over layer 97 to prevent oxidation ofthe titanium nitride layer 97 during subsequent steps such as depositionof BPSG. In the above example, if the sidewall spacers 90 arepolysilicon spacers (FIGS. 10, 15-18), then Ta₂O₅ is substituted forsilicon nitride in layer 90 b of FIG. 18.

Another way of forming capacitors in the present invention is by formingmetal insulator metal (MIM) capacitor structures. With reference to FIG.20, after conductively doped polysilicon is deposited over layer 60 tofill the contact holes and provide conductive plugs 61, the polysiliconis overetched so that the plugs 61 are recessed below the surface of thelayer 60. A layer of conductive barrier material 101, such as tantalumnitride or tantalum silicon nitride, is deposited over the layer 60 andsubsequently removed by etching or CMP to expose the layer 60 and theconductive barrier layer 101 on top of the plugs 61. Thereafter, layers64, 68, and 70 are deposited and patterned as discussed above.

If the sidewall spacers 90 are titanium nitride spacers, the conductivebarrier layer 101 is exposed during the etching steps described above,as shown in FIG. 21. Thereafter, with reference to FIGS. 22 and 23, alayer of platinum 103 is deposited over the titanium nitride sidewallspacers 90 (or 90 and 90 a). Platinum cell nodes are then electricallyisolated by filling with resist, and the top surfaces of spacers 90 (or90 and 90 a) are exposed by dry etching, or CMP, to remove the portionof the platinum layer 103 covering the spacers. Then, the spacers 90 (or90 and 90 a) are removed as described above. The resist covering theplatinum cell nodes is also subsequently removed. The MIM capacitor isformed, with reference to FIG. 24, by depositing a dielectric layer 105having a high dielectric constant, such as Ta₂O₅ or BST, over layer 103.Then a platinum cell plate 107 is deposited over dielectric layer 105.The platinum material in layers 103 and 107 may be substituted withother suitable materials, for example, ruthinium oxide, rhodium, orplatinum rhodium.

Where the sidewall spacers 90 are not titanium nitride spacers, such aspolysilicon sidewall spacers described above, the MIM capacitors areformed as follows. With reference to FIGS. 15, 16, and 17, a sidewallspacer made of platinum is deposited as sidewall spacer 90, instead of apolysilicon spacer. Then, a Ta₂O₅ or barium strontium titanate (BST)dielectric, or another high dielectric constant dielectric, is depositedas layer 90 b. A platinum layer is deposited as layer 90 c. These layersare then spacer etched and then over etched through barrier layer 164down to the tops of conductive barrier 101. The MIM capacitor structureis then completed as follows. With reference to FIG. 25, a platinum cellnode layer 107 is deposited, and the cell nodes are filled with resist.Thereafter, the platinum cell node layer 107 is etched back toelectrically isolate each cell capacitor, exposing the tops of spacers90, 90 b, and 90 c, and the resist is removed from the cell nodes.

The cell node layer 107 is electrically isolated from spacers 90 andneighboring cell nodes, as shown in FIG. 25. A Ta₂O₅ cell dielectriclayer 108 is then deposited over cell nodes 107 and exposed spacers 90,90 b, and 90 c. A platinum cell plate 109 is deposited over thedielectric layer 108.

In subsequent processing steps, cell plate 109 can be electricallyconnected to the spacer(s) 90. This can be accomplished, for example, byforming contact holes through layers 108 and 109 to the spacer(s) 90using a reactive ion etching process, as described above. The contactholes could then be filled with a conductive material to electricallyconnect the spacer(s) 90 to the cell plate 109. The aforementionedconnections can be made at the edges of memory arrays, thereby makingspacer(s) 90 part of the cell plate of the capacitor.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the square orrectangular block honeycomb sidewall pattern can be achieved by silicidepatterning. With reference to FIG. 26, a structure is formed accordingto methods well known in the art, and as discussed above, having a digitline 55, and cell node plugs 61, having contacts rising above the digitline 55, in a layer 60, which may be BPSG. A conductive barrier layer101, as shown FIG. 20, may be formed if so required by the resultingcapacitor structure. A layer 164 consisting of nitride is deposited overlayer 60. A thick layer 168 of phosphosilicate glass (PSG) or BPSG isdeposited over layer 164. On top of layer 168 is deposited a layer 170of polysilicon, and a layer 174 of TEOS.

A layer of patterned photoresist 72 is formed over the TEOS layer 174,as shown in FIGS. 27 and 28, to define a first series of trenches 74.With reference to FIG. 29, the patterned photoresist 72 is used to etchtrenches 175 in the TEOS layer 174. The trenches 175 are etched overevery other row of the cell node polysilicon plugs 61, and the etchingis down to and stops at the polysilicon layer 170. The photoresist 72 issubsequently removed. As shown in FIG. 30, another layer of patternedphotoresist 76 is deposited to define a second series of trenches 77that are perpendicular to the trenches 175 etched into the TEOS layer174. Reference numeral 70 a represents rows of the TEOS layer, betweenthe photoresist 76, that have not been etched (covered by photoresist 72in the prior etching step). The second series of photoresist rows runover every other line of cell node polysilicon plugs 61. The secondseries of photoresist trenches are used to etch trenches in polysiliconlayer 170 in a two step etch. The first step etch is a selectiveanisotropic etch through the exposed polysilicon layer 170. Then, aselective oxide etch is performed to remove the TEOS layer 174 from thepolysilicon layer 170. This etch is performed down into the BPSG or PSGlayer 168. Therefore, subsequent to etching the second row of trenches,remaining portions of the TEOS layer 174 are removed from the top thepolysilicon layer 170 by an oxide etch or another suitable method, asseen in FIG. 31.

The effect of etching the two transverse series of trenches isillustrated in FIG. 32, and forms a block checker board pattern. Theresulting structure is comprised of an array of trenches, or analternating square, rectangular, or oval checker pattern having higherelevations of TEOS layer areas 70 c, and intermediate elevations ofpolysilicon 70 b. FIG. 32 also shows the underlying layer of BPSG 168.The alternating square or rectangular checker pattern is comprised ofthree different elevations due to the two separate etching steps: someportions have been etched twice (down to the BPSG layer 168), someportions once, forming areas 70 b, and other portions not etched at all,forming areas 70 c. Alternatively, the aforementioned techniques can beused to form alternating oval structures (not shown). The above stepsused to form the alternating block pattern are discussed in detail inU.S. Pat. No. 6,087,263, the disclosure of which is incorporated hereinby reference.

Referring now to FIG. 33, a metal layer 178 is deposited over the topsurface of the block pattern. The metal deposited should be one thateasily forms a silicide. An exemplary material for metal layer 178 wouldbe titanium, paladium, or tungsten. A silicide is then formed byannealing the metal layer 178 with the polysilicon layer 170 where thetwo layers are in direct contact.

Next, with reference to FIG. 34, a wet etch is used to remove theportions of the metal layer 178 that did not react with the polysiliconlayer 170 to form a metal silicide during the annealing step. Theremaining metal portion is the silicide metal layer 180. Any remainingTEOS and polysilicon are subsequently etched away, using any appropriateetching process, thereby leaving behind a silicide block pattern(checker board pattern). The silicide blocks 180 are then isotropicallyetched back so that the silicide blocks do not bridge together at thecorners, as illustrated in FIGS. 35 and 36.

Using the silicide 180 checkerboard block pattern, as illustrated inFIG. 36, as a mask, the BPSG or PSG layer 168 is then selectively andanisotropically etched down to layer 164 consisting of nitride, oranother suitable dielectric etch stop layer, as shown in FIG. 37.Thereafter, the silicide blocks 180 are removed either by an etchingstep or by a chemical-mechanical polish (CMP), leaving BPSG square orrectangular blocks 168 over layer 164.

Next, with reference to FIG. 38, a spacer material 182 is deposited overthe blocks 168. The spacer material 182 could be TEOS, amorphoussilicon, polysilicon, titanium nitride, or another material. The spacermaterial 182 will be chosen by the artisan depending upon the type ofcapacitor that will be eventually made in the capacitor containersdefined by the spacer material 182. When choosing spacer material 182,consideration must be given to ensure that the spacer material 182 isetchably different from the block material 168, thereby enablingsubsequent removal of the block material 168 without damaging the spacermaterial 182. The spacer material is then spacer etched to createsidewall spacers, as illustrated in FIG. 39.

The BPSG or PSG blocks 168 are then removed by an etching process, orother suitable process, leaving a grid of interlocked spacers 182, asillustrated in FIGS. 40 and 41. The spacers 182 are then covered withlayers of materials depending upon the material chosen for the spacers,i.e. titanium nitride or polysilicon, as disclosed above. If the spacer182 is a amorphous silicon spacer, a process of seeding and annealingthe spacer can be performed to form a selective HSG layer, prior to thedeposition of the cell nitride layer. The HSG layer will provide thebenefit of a greater surface area, resulting in greater capacitance.

Thereafter, various types of capacitors can be formed in the containers,defined by the interlocked spacers 182, over the buried digit line 55.For example, Hemispherical Grain (HSG) Polysilicon can be deposited toform the bottom cell plate of the capacitor, followed by a dielectriclayer such as a nitride, an then depositing an upper electrode. Asdisclosed above, MIS or MIM capacitor structures may also be formed.

FIG. 42 illustrates a computer system 300 that may incorporate thebenefits of the present invention. The system 300 has a memory circuit321 including a capacitor array 320 constructed in accordance with thepresent invention. The system 300 includes a central processing unit(CPU) 302 for performing computer functions, such as executing softwareto perform desired tasks and calculations. One or more input/outputdevices 304, 306, such as a keypad or a mouse, are coupled to the CPU302 and allow an operator to manually input data thereto or to displayor otherwise output data generated by the CPU 302. One or moreperipheral devices such as a floppy disk drive 312 or a CD ROM drive 314may also be coupled to the CPU 302. The computer system 300 alsoincludes a bus 310 that couples the input/output devices 312, 314 andthe memory circuit 321 to the CPU 302.

While exemplary embodiments of the invention have been described andillustrated, it should be apparent that many modifications can be madeto the present inventions without departing from its spirit and scope.For example, the above described checker board pattern could be printedon BPSG, PSG, or another layer, utilizing photoresist patterning, orother patterning techniques. Accordingly the invention is not limited bythe foregoing description or drawings, but is only limited by the scopeof the appended claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent ofthe United States is:
 1. A method of forming a semiconductor memorystructure comprising: forming a capacitor support structure over a digitline and over a substrate, said support structure includinginterconnected sidewalls defining containers between said sidewalls, atleast some of said containers being formed over respective capacitorplugs; and forming capacitors in at least some of said containers. 2.The method according to claim 1 wherein said capacitor plugs extend to atransistor region formed in said substrate.
 3. The method according toclaim 1 wherein said support structure comprises a single layer ofmaterial.
 4. The method according to claim 1 wherein said supportstructure comprises a plurality of layers of material.
 5. The methodaccording to claim 1 further comprising forming said support structureby etching at least one layer of the support structure forming materialto form one of rectangular, oval, and square alternating block pattern.6. The method according to claim 5 further comprising forming sidewallspacers on vertical surfaces of said block pattern.
 7. The methodaccording to claim 5 further comprising transferring said block patterninto an underlying layer of said support structure forming material. 8.The method according to claim 7 further comprising forming sidewallspacers on sidewalls of said transferred block pattern.
 9. The methodaccording to claim 8 further comprising forming said capacitor supportstructure from said sidewall spacers.
 10. The method according to claim5 further comprising forming a metal layer on top of said alternatingblock pattern.
 11. The method according to claim 10 wherein said metallayer consists of one of titanium, palladium, and tungsten.
 12. Themethod according to claim 10 further comprising annealing said metallayer to form a suicide.
 13. The method according to claim 5 whereinsaid support structure forming material comprises a BPSG layer between anitride layer and a polysilicon layer.
 14. The method according to claim5 wherein said support structure forming material comprises a nitridelayer beneath a BPSG layer, a polysilicon layer over said BPSG layer,and a TEOS layer over said polysilicon layer.
 15. The method accordingto claim 5 wherein said support structure forming material comprises anitride layer beneath a PSG layer, a polysilicon layer over said PSGlayer, and a TEOS layer over said polysilicon layer.
 16. The methodaccording to claim 8 wherein said sidewall spacers comprise polysiliconspacers.
 17. The method according to claim 8 wherein said sidewallspacers comprise titanium nitride spacers.
 18. The method according toclaim 8 wherein said sidewall spacers comprise TEOS spacers that areetched from between the capacitors.
 19. The method according to claim 8wherein said sidewall spacers comprise platinum spacers.
 20. The methodaccording to claim 8 wherein said sidewall spacers comprise amorphoussilicon spacers.
 21. The method according to claim 20 further comprisingseeding and annealing said spacers to form an HSG layer.
 22. The methodaccording to claim 1 wherein said capacitors are formed as metalinsulator metal capacitors.
 23. The method according to claim 22 whereinsaid capacitors comprise a first platinum layer, a Ta₂O₅ or BST layer,and a second platinum layer.
 24. The method according to claim 23further comprising forming a conductive barrier layer beneath either thefirst or second platinum layer.
 25. The method according to claim 24wherein said conductive barrier layer comprises tantalum nitride ortantalum silicon nitride.
 26. The method according to claim 1 whereinsaid capacitors are formed as metal insulator silicon capacitors. 27.The method according to claim 26 wherein said capacitors comprise an HSGlayer, a Ta₂O₅ layer, and a titanium nitride layer.
 28. The methodaccording to claim 8 wherein said spacers are electrically connected toa cell plate and function as part of the cell plate of the capacitor.29. A method of forming a capacitor array comprising: forming a digitline over a substrate; providing electrical contacts extending abovesaid digit line; forming a pattern of interconnected sidewalls over saidelectrical contacts; and forming capacitors electrically connected tosaid electrical contacts in containers defined by said sidewalls. 30.The method according to claim 29 wherein said electrical contacts extendto a transistor region formed in said substrate.
 31. The methodaccording to claim 29 further comprising forming said interconnectedsidewalls in a support structure.
 32. The method according to claim 31wherein said support structure comprises a single layer of material. 33.The method according to claim 31 wherein said support structurecomprises a plurality of layers of material.
 34. The method according toclaim 31 further comprising forming an alternating block pattern in atleast one layer of material in said support structure.
 35. The methodaccording to claim 34 further comprising forming sidewall spacers onvertical surfaces of said block pattern.
 36. The method according toclaim 34 further comprising transferring said block pattern into anunderlying layer of said support structure.
 37. The method according toclaim 36 further comprising forming sidewall spacers on said transferredblock pattern.
 38. The method according to claim 37 further comprisingforming said interconnected sidewalls from said sidewall spacers. 39.The method according to claim 34 further comprising forming a metallayer on top of said alternating block pattern.
 40. The method accordingto claim 39 wherein said metal layer consists of one of titanium,palladium, and tungsten.
 41. The method according to claim 33 furthercomprising annealing said metal layer to form a suicide.
 42. The methodaccording to claim 33 wherein said plurality of layers comprises a BPSGlayer between a nitride layer and a polysilicon layer.
 43. The methodaccording to claim 33 wherein said plurality of layers comprises anitride layer beneath a BPSG layer, a polysilicon layer over said BPSGlayer, and a TEOS layer over said polysilicon layer.
 44. The methodaccording to claim 33 wherein said plurality of layers comprises anitride layer beneath a PSG layer, a polysilicon layer over said PSGlayer, and a TEOS layer over said polysilicon layer.
 45. The methodaccording to claim 37 wherein said sidewall spacers comprise polysiliconspacers.
 46. The method according to claim 37 wherein said sidewallspacers comprise titanium nitride spacers.
 47. The method according toclaim 37 wherein said sidewall spacers comprise TEOS spacers that areetched from between the capacitors.
 48. The method according to claim 37wherein said sidewall spacers comprise platinum spacers.
 49. The methodaccording to claim 37 wherein said sidewall spacers comprise amorphoussilicon spacers.
 50. The method according to claim 43 further comprisingseeding and annealing said spacers to form an HSG layer.
 51. The methodaccording to claim 29 wherein said capacitors are formed as metalinsulator metal capacitors.
 52. The method according to claim 51 whereinsaid capacitors comprise a first platinum layer, a Ta₂O₅ or BST layer,and a second platinum layer.
 53. The method according to claim 52further comprising forming a conductive barrier layer beneath either thefirst or second platinum layer.
 54. The method according to claim 53wherein said conductive barrier layer comprises tantalum nitride ortantalum silicon nitride.
 55. The method according to claim 29 whereinsaid capacitors are formed as metal insulator silicon capacitors. 56.The method according to claim 55 wherein said capacitors comprise an HSGlayer, a Ta₂O₅ layer, and a titanium nitride layer.
 57. The methodaccording to claim 37 wherein said spacers are electrically connected toa cell plate and function as part of the cell plate of the capacitor.58. The method according to claim 6 wherein said sidewall spacerscomprise TEOS spacers and are left between said capacitors.
 59. Themethod according to claim 37 wherein said sidewall spacers comprise TEOSspacers and are left between said capacitors.